The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-09-13
MRS. FORD'S STORY.
CROSSING THE CONTINENT AND
LOSING HER CHILDREN.
Unsheiz9n in Her Statements The
San Francisco Police Expected to
Shed Light on the Mystery


From the Ne,o York Herald.
The case of Mrs. Mary E. Ford, who ar
rived i'll Jersey City on Wednesday, Aug.
81. and whose three children, baggage and
money she declares are missing, is one of
the strangest with which the police of that
city have ever had to deal.
Mrs Forl's story is curiously lacking in
confrmatory proof of its main points, yet
no evidence has been discovered which con-
clusively contradicts her.
She says she is a widow Her husband
died four years ago They lived at an OBJ
scure mining camp in Locust Valley, close
to the borders of Nevada, in San Belnardino
county, California On the opposite side of the
line lies Lincoln county, Nevada The pay ore
that is taken out of the earth at Locust Val
ley is copper, and it is shipped for the mar
ket at Five Mile Post, a place eighty-ive
miles distant. Drumm's station is five
miles nearer, but it is the exclu-
sive property of wealthy landlord, and
he only allows it to be used for his own pur-
poses. Mrs. Ford was the female Boniface
Tor the mining settlement, having succeeded
her husband in that business Besides n
comfortable house, as houses go out there,
she possesses thirty-five cabins, in which the
miners lodge, and sometimes has had as
many as $50 living at her table. The SUPER
intendent of the mines, William T. Bates, a
married man, seems to have been her agent
and adviser.
TO EDUCATE HER CHILDREN.
Having waxed well to do in this worlds
goods, Mrs. Ford determined to return for
a time at least to civilization. She had
three bright children-Johnny, the eldest.
13 years old; Frank, 9 years, and Mary 6
years-and her most important object in
coming to the East was to give them a
proper education. She was Miss Kenny
before she became Mrs Ford She has rela-
tives i'll New York of the former name, and
it was when she went in search of these
persons, according to her own statement,
that her great calamity befell her.
The departure of Mrs. Ford and her little
brood was great event for Locust Valley,
which is very far from any post office or
telegraph station and is, in fact, one of the
most isolated places in the United States
That it was unknown to almost all railroad
men and telegraphers in the East, is one of
the striking reasons that have tended to
throw great doubt upon Mrs Ford's aSser-
tions. Mr.. William T. Bates and his wife
she says, assisted her to make the necessary
arrangements for her important
journey. The nearest main railroad line
to Locust Valley is the Atlantic and
Pacific. She might have obtained her
tickets at The Needles, ON the Colorado
river, but she preferred, or else Bates, for
reasons of his own, induced her to go to San
Francisco, whittier he and his wife &C
companied her, thence to take passage by
the Central Pacific. In one of her trunks
was packed a large amount of money 1t
was in gold coin. 1t is an obvious question
to ask why Bates did not convert this into
drafts for her SO as to avoid all danger of
robbery.
THE CHILDREN DISAPPEAR.
The overland journey was without grave
incident save the acquaintance which she
formed with lady and her fam
lily who were going to Antwerp
on the steamer Belgenland, and
the interest which a colored Pullman
car porter, named Henry Poindexter,
showed in her. With the lady she talked of
going to Europe on the same ship and voy-
age. She arrived in Jersey City at 1880
O'Clock on the morning of Aug. 81. The
porter ofiiciously offered to show her res
taurant and to help her to find her friends
He took her by the arm and her little girl
by the hand and led the party to place
kept by August Steup. The woman who
was going to Europe was there, too, and beer
was drank, although Mrs Ford says that she
took only ice and water She states that she
left her children at the restaurant in charge
of Poindexter to go over to the house of her
cousin, Peter Kenny, in East Thirteenth
street this city. Johnny had the checks for
her baggage in his pocket The porter
promised to take care of the children until
4 O'Clock in the afternoon. Mrs. Ford did
not get back until Z o'clock in the evening
Then the children. the porter, and the wo-
nan who was bound for Antwerp were all
gone She has not seen her little ones since
According to Mrs. Ford very conflicting
statements were made by the attendants in
the restaurant. One Of them first said that
the woman who was going to Antwerp had
taken the children off on the steamer with
her, but when questioned by the police he
denies this
YOU ARE THE MAN"
The police of Jersey City were informed
OH Wednesday night of Mrs. Fords plight,
and thorough search for the children and
the trunks was begun. Mrs. Ford's weak
ness of memory and the evidently confused
condition of her mind have greatly compli-
Gated the case, and the officials have repeat
edly acknowledged themselves to be thor
oughly puzzled She charged Poindexter
with having abducted her children and
stolen her luggage. The police confronted
her with him and seven other palace car
porters who had been on the same train and
she at once picked him out. There was not
the slightest hesitation in her manner.
"You are the man." said she, almost
fercely, pointing her finger at him.
With her at the time were her friends
Mrs. Mary Kenny, of East Thirteenth street
Bernard F. Kenny and Mrs. Ann Mulligan,
of No 261 First avenue, and Detective
Close, of Jersey City. All bore witness
afterward that Poindexter apparently ad-
United at first that she and her children
were in his car, but almost Immediately
afterward denied it, declaring that he had
never before seen her She identified the
sleeping car conductor in a similar manner,
but he positively stated that he did not
know her.
QUEER STATEMENT.
And here came most singular incident.
a man named John Seimering, Of No. ri
North avenue, this city, came forward and
said that he had seen Mrs. Ford and her
three children on a train on which he had
come, but which arrived at Jersey City on
Wednesday at 7:15 a. IA. He asserted that
Mrs. Ford stopped at Newark. She reached
Jersey City, it must be remembered, at ii ~
on the same day. She absolutely denied
that she stopped at Newark. The police of
that city have secured every portion of it III
search of the children, but i'll vain. Yester-
day morning, in order to test the statement
made by SeiIOering, the crew of porters. of
the train on which he was were stood up
before Mrs Ford with Poindexter in their
midst. She again picked him out as posi-
lively as before